William K. Hallman

Citizen participation and emprowerment: The case of local environmental hazards

Local environmental hazards place millions of citizens at risk of physical, emotional, and financial harm. While the discovery of such hazards can be fundamentally disempowering for individuals and communities, few scholars have examined the dynamics of empowerment in this context. We explore the relationships among forms of empowerment, citizen participation, and local environmental hazards, and offer a model of the processes of empowerment and disempowerment appropriate to a broad range of citizen issues. On the basis of this analysis we recommend a partnership approach to community decision making that is designed both to reduce the likelihood that local environmental hazards will develop and to minimize the disempowering impact of any threats that do occur.

Who Does the Public Trust? The Case of Genetically Modified Food in the United States

Trust is important for the perception of many types of risk, including those relating to genetically modified (GM) food. Who the public trusts in any given circumstance, however, is not well understood. In this study of public trust regarding GM food, an exploratory factor analysis with Promax rotation reveals public classification of three common institutional types-evaluators, watchdogs, and merchants. The structure of relationships among these stakeholders can act to enable or constrain public support for this new technology. Evaluators-scientists, universities, and medical professionals-are the most trusted. Watchdogs-consumer advocacy organizations, environmental organizations, and media sources-are moderately trusted. Merchants-grocers and grocery stores, industry, and farmers-are least trusted. While the federal government is seen as closest to being an evaluator, it is not highly correlated with any of the factors. The lack of trust in the organizations with the greatest resources and responsibilities for ensuring the safety of GM food should be seen as an important obstacle to the adoption of the technology.

Measuring chemical sensitivity prevalence: a questionnaire for population studies.

Because no information exists on the prevalence of chemical sensitivity syndromes such as multiple chemical sensitivities, a questionnaire for use in population studies was developed and tested to assess the presence or absence of chemical sensitivity. Seven hundred five individuals attending clinics answered a questionnaire asking whether each of 122 common substances caused symptoms. Results showed that patients with multiple chemical sensitivities and asthma had average total scores that were significantly different from each other and from those of each of the other diagnostic categories. Higher total scores were also reported by female patients. The instrument described here may facilitate meaningful prevalence studies of multiple chemical sensitivities. It will also allow study of chemically induced symptoms in other conditions such as asthma.

Gender and food, a study of attitudes in the USA towards organic, local, U.S. grown, and GM-free foods

Food choice is influenced by consumer attitudes towards food attributes. This U.S.-based study (n = 601) simultaneously compares attitudes towards selected food attributes of organic, locally grown, U.S. grown, and GM-free food in relation to other food attributes. Exploratory factor analysis identifies underlying constructs that determine, together and separately, female and male food choice decisions. Gendered analysis of the value of food in life and food behaviours (cooking and shopping) support the investigation of the highlighted food attributes. Respondents generally assigned greater importance to the U.S. grown, followed by GM-free, locally grown, and organically produced food attributes in deciding what to eat. Analysis of the female and male subsamples yielded similar factor results. All four main attributes were captured in a single factor, associated with respondents in both the female and male subsamples who are older, have lower incomes, and who are religiously observant. Additionally, among females, this factor was associated with higher education; and among males, living in households with children and/or with partners. Additional studies should further explore the interaction of food attributes now becoming increasingly important and prevalent in current food products.

Subjective and Objective Risk as Predictors of Influenza Vaccination during the Vaccine Shortage of 2004–2005

BACKGROUND We aimed to identify the role of objective risk status and subjective risk beliefs in influenza vaccination decisions during the recent rationing of influenza vaccine. METHOD A random sample of 300 Americans, obtained through random-digit dialing, was interviewed regarding influenza vaccination practices and beliefs in September 2004 and again in March 2005. RESULTS One-half of individuals at high risk of influenza did not know that they were at high risk and, therefore, were not vaccinated. Respondents at high objective risk were more likely to report having been vaccinated than respondents who were not at high objective risk (36% vs. 6%, respectively; odds ratio, 8.31; 95% confidence interval, 3.65-18.88). However, a more powerful predictor of self-reported vaccination was subjective risk (64% vs. 7%, respectively; odds ratio, 24.02; 95% confidence interval, 12.18-48.09). Subjective risk fully mediated the relationship between objective risk and vaccination. Other predictors of vaccination included physician recommendation, habit, prior vaccination intention, belief that the influenza vaccine is safe and effective, perceived likelihood of getting influenza, and trait neuroticism. CONCLUSION Health communication efforts must be more effective in persuading adults with chronic illness and individuals in contact with persons at risk that they should be vaccinated against influenza.

Why do people report better health by phone than by mail

Context:Past research shows that fewer health symptoms are reported by phone than by mail. Objectives:We sought to examine whether interview mode-dependent differences in health symptom reporting are the result of socially desirable responding or to expending less cognitive effort when formulating responses, a behavior known as satisficing. Design:Participants were randomly assigned to telephone interview only or to mail interview followed 2 weeks later by telephone interview. Setting & Participants:Participants were American veterans from the Gulf War Registry (n = 719). Main Outcome Measures:Our main outcome measure was the number of mild, moderate, or severe symptoms reported (of 48 possible). Results:Veterans reported an average of 5 more symptoms via mail than via telephone, F (1, 709) = 32.50, P < 0.001. The difference was mainly the result of symptoms reported by mail as mild but not reported at all by phone. Veterans with higher social desirability scores reported fewer symptoms by phone and mail, F (1, 709) = 10.11, P = 0.001, but social desirability scores did not interact with interview mode. Furthermore, embarrassing symptoms such as genital complaints were no less likely to be reported by phone. Conclusions:Reporting of better health in phone surveys is the result of fewer mild symptoms reports but not of socially desirable responding. The findings are consistent with phone interviews encouraging satisficing by limiting the recall of less severe health states. Researchers should handle mild symptom reports with some skepticism.

Symptom patterns among Gulf War Registry veterans

OBJECTIVES We identify symptom patterns among veterans who believe they suffer from Gulf War-related illnesses and characterize groups of individuals with similar patterns. METHODS A mail survey was completed by 1161 veterans drawn from the Gulf War Health Registry. RESULTS An exploratory factor analysis revealed 4 symptom factors. A K-means cluster analysis revealed 2 groups: (1) veterans reporting good health and few moderate/severe symptoms, and (2) veterans reporting fair/poor health and endorsing an average of 37 symptoms, 75% as moderate/severe. Those in Cluster 2 were more likely to report having 1 or more of 24 medical conditions. CONCLUSIONS These findings are consistent with previous investigations of symptom patterns in Gulf War veterans. This multisymptom illness may be more fully characterized by the extent, breadth, and severity of symptoms reported.

Persistence of Symptoms in Veterans of the First Gulf War: 5-Year Follow-up

Background During the 1990–1991 Gulf War, approximately 700,000 U.S. troops were deployed to the Persian Gulf theater of operations. Of that number, approximately 100,000 have presented medical complaints through various registry and examination programs. Objectives Widespread symptomatic illness without defining physical features has been reported among veterans of the 1991 Gulf War. We ascertained changes in symptom status between an initial 1995 symptom evaluation and a follow-up in 2000. Methods We assessed mailed symptom survey questionnaires for 390 previously surveyed members of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Gulf War Registry for changes over the 5-year interval in terms of number and severity of symptoms. Results For the cohort as a whole, we found no significant changes in symptom number or severity. Those initially more symptomatic in 1995 showed some improvement over time, but remained much more highly symptomatic than those who had lesser initial symptomatology. Conclusions The symptom outbreak following the 1991 Gulf War has not abated over time in registry veterans, suggesting substantial need for better understanding and care for these veterans.

When Good Food Goes Bad Television Network News and the Spinach Recall of 2006

In September 2006, an unprecedented nationwide outbreak of fresh spinach contaminated with Escherichia coli O157:H7 was communicated to the American public through press releases from the Food and Drug Administration. The potential for severe and fatal illness from consuming this spinach required effective communication by media outlets. Television network news coverage (ABC, CBS, and NBC morning and evening news shows) was examined for quantity, consistency with press release information critical for public health, and source usage. Results of this study consider the role of government information subsidies in disseminating information critical to public health, with potential impact for communication of other national health crises.

An empirical investigation of the role of knowledge in public opinion about GM food

The research presented here examines the hypothesis that the most effective way to increase public approval of GM foods is to provide education about them. To do this, a national telephone survey was conducted in the USA, which included multiple measures of knowledge about GM foods. The results indicate that all of the knowledge measures were positively related to approval, such that more knowledge was related to more approval. However, when the knowledge variables were simultaneously entered in a regression model, only one of the measures, a scale of knowledge about potentially threatening aspects of GM food, was significantly related to approval. The overall model predicted only 8% of the variance in approval, leading to the conclusion that knowledge may be just one of the many factors that influence opinions of GM food.